Manteca Students’ ‘Assassination Game’ Raises Eyebrows

MANTECA -- The Manteca Police Department is cracking down on a game popular with high school students involving toy guns known as the "Senior Assassination Game."

Students tell FOX40 the game is all for fun, but police say not everyone understands -- and some have mistaken the teens as potential robbers.

"I think it’s pretty cool. I mean kids get to have fun and go everywhere and then you guys meet up and you guys get to shoot each other with a Nerf gun," student Juliet Murillo said.

One mom, who declined to be identified, says she understands why some are so fearful.

"I was in high school a long time ago and we did similar things," she said. "But the world is a lot different now."

For years, high school seniors have paid to play, given "targets" to shoot with water or foam dart guns. In the end, the last student left standing wins the cash.

"If you use a paintball gun or something that appears to not look like a Nerf gun, your whole team is out," parent Dayna Saling said.

But police say they've been getting calls from scared families saying they see people crouched in bushes with what appear to be guns.

The game is also banned by school officials. The Manteca Unified School District sent FOX40 a statement regarding the game:

"Any students caught participating in 'Senior Assassination' on any Manteca Unified school campus will be disciplined accordingly."

While most believe they should be allowed to play, they understand why there should be limitations.

"If that’s going to be the outcome of it, no one should play it because that’s a major safety hazard," Manteca High School student Rhiannon Chaney said. "Not just for yourself and the players who are playing but for everybody around you."